Break My Bones
by Heartlocket1004
Summary: After escaping the Scorch, Rachel is determined to rescue the few people she has left to care about from WCKD's clutches. But when it threatens Newt's life in the worst possible way, can Rachel sacrifice her personal happiness for the greater good? Or will she do whatever it takes to save the one person she loves? WCKD may not be good... but sometimes it's not good we need.
1. Rescue

*A/N: I do not own the Maze Runner or any of its characters. I only own my own OC Rachel. Story contains spoilers for the movies and the book. Warning: mild swearing as was in the movies.

Rachel took a deep breath, attempting to calm her racing heart.

In the stillness of the dry, desert-like land around them, she could feel the tension rolling off her companions like a heat wave as they remained as still as possible. Despite the long wait, they remained alert, not even daring to shift unless absolutely necessary. It was only adding to her own nerves, but she didn't dare say anything, didn't dare even breathe too loudly, least it distract someone.

This was it. Six months of hard work, lost sleep, mistakes and small (tiny, really) triumphs had led up to this moment. They could not afford to fail now.

 _Ch ch ch ch ch ch._

As one the group tensed as they heard the chugging sound, faint at first and then growing steadily louder.

Raising her head, Rachel's grey eyes met Newt's chocolate brown. _It's now or never._

They had one shot at this, one shot to make it work right. Hopefully, _hopefully_ , with the numerous times they had practiced making this run, Thomas had set the bomb and timed it right. They had practiced it over and over: timing how long it took for Thomas and Vince to jump on a moving train, how quickly they could make it across and to the right carriage; testing how long it took for the bomb to explode, how much explosive power was needed to break the links in one try but not harm the rest of the carriage; simulating the time it took for the carriages to screech to an emergency halt after they became detached,. Vince had almost gotten himself blown up on one occasion while Thomas was almost run over when they underestimated the force with which the train came to a halt.

The one consolation they had was that the last nine practice runs they had simulated had been perfect, down to the extraction. But even practice couldn't predict the many variables that could impact the real situation and Rachel found herself twisting the cord on her cargo pant leg anxiously as she waited.

The train was getting closer - too close. The carriage links had to break _soon_ , otherwise it might travel too far along the tracks from where Rachel, Newt, and the few others were hiding. That meant even less time for them to act, and time wasn't something they had.

 _Please. Please. Please._ Rachel chanted in her head, willing luck to be in their favour. Because that was what this whole mission would boil down to eventually. It was like a card game - it didn't matter how well you knew the rules and how many times you had practiced; if you held a bad hand, you lost.

And they had too much to lose if they were dealt a bad card now.

Despite agreeing before they had set out not to be distracted, to not rely on each other, Newt reached out to Rachel. She took his hand without hesitation, clutching it tightly in her own as they prayed to whatever God might exist and as one they counted silently.

 _3… 2… 1…_

Like clockwork, they heard an explosion not too far away, the sharp boom echoing across the plains and followed by a metallic screeching as train wheels automatically locked to prevent an accident. Rachel let out a small breath of relief. _The stick actually did it._

Still, neither she nor the group moved, waiting for the signal. It was always the hardest thing to do - wait - but it was imperative that the coast was definitely clear. Otherwise, they risked being captured and the Right Arm really couldn't afford to lose any more people.

A sharp whistle sounded, and Newt instantly popped his head around the boulder where he and Rachel had been hiding.

"Newt!" Vincent's voice called, and Rachel stood up beside Newt.

The blonde British youth turned, calling to the others, "All right, come on, let's go!"

At his signal, the group darted out from where they were hiding behind the boulders, running forwards quickly. Rachel ran ahead, dashing to the carriages while Newt followed a little more slowly, carrying the heavy metal cutters on his back.

Vincent was waiting for Newt by the side of the carriage, while they could hear Thomas banging on the train carriages' metal walls.

"Minho!" Thomas shouted as he banged away at each carriage, searching for his friend. "Minho! Do you hear me?"

"Aris!" Rachel yelled on the other side as she reached the line of carriages that they knew to be holding captured WCKD subjects. "Sonya!"

"Minho!" Thomas shouted, and Rachel banged along the carriages as she searched, "Sonya! Aris!"

An eruption of cheers sounded from inside one of the carriages, and Rachel stopped.

"Aris? Sonya?" She yelled, and she heard a high-pitched yell that she would recognize anywhere.

"Sonya!" Rachel shouted, and she thought she heard Aris's voice mixed inside as well.

Thomas faintly heard Minho's distinctive yell as well, and he stopped at the same carriage as Rachel.

Newt ran up to them, and Thomas urged quickly, "This one, this one!"

Newt instantly began unpacking his kit, grabbing the metal cutter while Thomas and Vince went to scout out the front of their line of carriages. WCKD's workers had stopped their half of the train as soon as they were made aware of the situation, which meant that the portion of the train with all the armed soldiers was much closer to them than they would have liked.

Still, it was no closer than they had expected, so it was with practiced swiftness that Newt began sawing at the strong metal clamps that held the cargo box-shaped carriage to the train wheels, which kept all the carriages connected. On the other side of the carriage, one of the Right Arm soldiers (Bob) sawed through the other clamp. Rachel meanwhile had scampered up the ladder that was welded into the side of the carriage and onto the roof where she began unwinding the heavy ropes that she had taken from Porter (another fellow Right Arm friend).

She heard the scrambling of feet on the metal ladder, and Rachel asked without looking up, "How are we doing?"

"It's going to be close." Thomas replied as he quickly grabbed one end of the ropes Rachel was unwinding. At the end of the rope, tied firmly in place, was a carabiner, and Thomas ran to clip it securely to one of the metal loops on the corner of the carriage roof.

Vince joined the two teens, mimicking Thomas's movements with another end of the rope, while Rachel - having finished unwinding - grabbed a third end and ran to secure it to a corner as well. Thomas, having finished with his first carabiner, grabbed the last remaining end and ran to get it secured to the final corner.

"Newt, how's it progressing?" Thomas called down to his friend as he secured the last clip.

"Don't rush me." Came the curt response as Newt continued to focus on calmly sawing through the metal clasp.

A loud bang had the three on the roof flattening themselves to the roof, and Rachel looked over to see the WCKD soldiers advancing on them. The men fired again, falling into a continuous rhythm as they got closer, and Thomas yelled, "Rachel!"

"Going!"

Rachel quickly scampered her way down the ladder, drawing a pistol that had been tucked securely inside her jacket as she went. She dodged bullets as she made her way to Newt's side while Vince followed her - only he went to cover Bob on the other side. On the roof, Thomas pulled his own gun from his jacket and the three fired back at the soldiers as they desperately fought for time and their lives.

"Newt, get up here!" Thomas yelled as he fired once again, and Newt snapped, "Almost there."

A bullet narrowly missed Rachel's head, and she ducked back quickly pressing herself against the side of the carriage where she fired a shot at the soldier who had aimed for her and Newt. Her mark hit true, and the soldier fell down with a yelp.

"Newt!" Rachel called, and he gasped, "Done!"

He pulled back, the metal clasp falling with a small clang to the ground, and Vince shouted from the other side as Bob also finished up, "Bob, go!"

"Rach." Newt gestured for her to start up the ladder, but Rachel pointed out, "I'm covering you, remember?"

She paused to poke her head around the side of the train carriage, firing at the approaching WCKD soldiers, before she ducked back behind their cover.

"Go!"

Rachel pushed Newt back, forcing the reluctant teen up the ladder. He scampered up quickly after giving up on arguing with her, hurrying onto the roof of the carriage. Rachel continued to fire at the oncoming soldiers, ducking away when a bullet came a little too close to taking off her head for comfort.

' _Dammit, Harriet, where are you?_ ' Rachel thought as she glanced up at the sky desperately.

The WCKD soldiers were getting too close for comfort, and neither she nor Vince could get up onto the carriage until they were locked and loaded, or else they would all be sitting ducks on the open carriage roof. ' _Come on, Harriet, come on..._ '

Rachel's ears perked up as she heard a faint humming noise, and she glance up at the sky again in relief. There, coming toward them from the mountains, was a Berg that Rachel knew had to be piloted by Harriet's team. The sight of the huge craft made the WCKD soldiers pause, as though in confusion, and Rachel grinned. Perfect timing.

A hook began to descend from the Berg toward the carriage as the large carrier stopped to hover over the carriage. Unfortunately, the WCKD soldiers realized what was going on at the same time, and they began firing and advancing at a much faster pace now that they were aware they could easily lose their targets. Rachel and Vince fired back valiantly, trying to keep the soldiers back as long as possible while Thomas, Newt, Bob, and Porter worked on getting the ropes hooked up to the hook.

"Rachel!"

Rachel glanced up at Newt's call, to see him peering over the side at her urgently.

"Get up here! Hurry!" He shouted, before being forced to duck as the WCKD soldiers fired in his direction.

"Vince!" Rachel yelled, and the man shouted back at her from the other side of the carriage, "Go, go, go!"

Heeding his order, Rachel quickly turned, scampering up the side ladder just as the carriage began to lift up off the ground as the Berg started to take off. She flinched as bullets continued to come at them, and she heard bangs above her head as Thomas continued to fire down on WCKD in an effort to cover her and Vince as they climbed up.

Suddenly, the carriage lurched as the Berg started to take off, and Rachel gasped as her footing faltered - it was only for one second, but as with most matters of life and death, one second made all the difference. With a yelp she felt herself starting to fall, her free hand reaching wildly to grab something to hold while the other strained to carry her weight as she abruptly dropped.

' _I'm dead._ '

The thought flashed briefly through her mind in that one second as Rachel felt her grip falter and she knew she was falling to her death - or worse.

But then a hand (quickly followed by another) shot out, grabbing her flailing one and holding on tight. A gun fell down beside her, and Rachel looked up in relief to see Thomas leaning over the side of the carriage top, his hands grasping hers.

"Come on!" He shouted, grunting as he helped haul her up.

Rachel grit her teeth as she clambered her way up with Thomas's aid, and she finally collapsed beside her friend safely on the roof. Panting, Rachel glanced down the side of the carriage where she had almost fallen to certain doom before she looked back at the dark-haired teen beside her.

"Thanks." Rachel gasped out.

Thomas shook his head as he leant back, exhausted.

"No problem. You'd have done the same for me." He answered, catching his breath.

A small grin then flashed across his face, and Thomas said in a mix of wonder and satisfaction, "We actually pulled it off."

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch." Rachel replied, though a small grin was tugging on her own lips. "We still have to make it back undetected."

"I'd bet you we'll have no trouble with that." Thomas countered. "Ten days' worth of rationed chocolate squares."

"I'd be a fool to make such a deal against a dumb, lucky stick like you, Tom." Rachel chuckled, and Thomas laughed with her as he finally stood up to look out and check they were indeed safe as they flew off into the mountains.

Rachel also lifted her head up at last, just in time to catch a strange look on Newt's face. It was only for a fraction of a second and then it was gone, but it still made Rachel frown slightly. The look had been uneasy and almost annoyed, though she hadn't been able to fully read the emotion before Newt schooled his features and he moved over to help her up.

"What's wrong?" She asked him as he pulled her to her feet, but Newt feigned nonchalance.

"Hm?" He hummed, and Rachel shook her head

"Nevermind." Rachel sighed, before hugging her… for lack of a better word, friend.

Newt returned the embrace, and Rachel sighed again as she felt him relax instantly. She wasn't sure what had gotten into him earlier but she let it go as she let herself feel safe and warm in Newt's arms. Besides, with Aris, Sonya, and Minho back, things could only start to look up from here on out. Right?


	2. Sweet Bitterness

As soon as they had landed in the harbour that the Right Arm had been using as their base for the past few months, the teens were moving down the sides of the carriage, anxious to reach the door and reunite with their friends.

Several people were already working on the locks, sawing away the heavy metal as soon as the carriage had been set down safely. Thomas was at the door first, naturally anxious, but Newt and Rachel were close behind. None of them said a word, too nervous to do more than wait as they dared to hope for the first time in months.

' _We did it.'_ Rachel marveled as she watched the saw break through the thick metal locks. ' _We actually did it.'_

Months and months of planning were finally about to pay off. Her gaze wondered briefly to the side, off to the edge of the harbour. There, just in view from her current spot, was the rusty old ship that they had found several months ago. It had been the reason for their choice in settling down in this location, and even now she could see signs of movement all over the ship as the Right Arm got it sea-ready.

The clanging sound of the heavy carriage locks falling away had Rachel turning her attention back to the rescued carriage just as she also heard movement behind her.

She glanced back to see Frypan and Harriet joining them at last, hurrying away from the Barge they had been flown inside the Right Arm hideout after dropping off the carriage. Seeing them, Rachel once again mused over just how lucky they had been. Jorge and Brenda's distraction to capture the Berg with Harriet and Frypan's help had gone as smoothly as they had only cautiously hoped it would, and Rachel could hardly believe just how all the pieces of their admittedly risky plan had actually come together to work.

Now they just had to get Minho, Sonya, and Aris out of the bloody carriage they were trapped inside.

Nodding briefly at Harriet and Frypan to acknowledge her friends, Rachel turned back to the front as the Right Arm men pulled the heavy carriage door open, finally letting them in.

Thomas was the first to step inside, making his way carefully through the dark carriage. Rachel darted in next, and she didn't have to go more than a few steps before she saw them.

"Aris! Sonya!" Rachel gasped in a strange mix of relief and horror.

She was glad beyond words to have her friends back alive, but she was also concerned and more than a little dismayed at the condition they were in. The two teens looked like they had been to hell and back, especially Aris. Although Sonya was as disheveled and alarmingly thin as the brunette boy, Aris was also sporting a black eye and several lacerations on his face and on his body where it was just visible beneath his shirt. Rachel hadn't seen Aris look this terrible since they had made it out of the Maze, and Sonya had always been a strong and healthy Navi. To see her so pale and weakened...

"Let's get you out." Rachel murmured, turning to the front. "I need the bolt cutters!"

Newt came up behind her, holding out the tool. Rachel quickly started to work on the manacles around her friends' wrists which held them hostage against the roof of the carriage, while Newt knelt down beside Aris, waiting while Rachel quickly removed Sonya's bindings.

"I'm sorry." Aris murmured quietly to Newt, who glanced at the younger boy in some confusion.

"You have nothing to be sorry for." He replied, but Aris's eyes were heavy with guilt as he shook his head.

"Sorry."

Rachel glanced at Aris as he apologized again, in barely a whisper while his head hung forward and he avoided eye contact with Newt. Her grey eyes then flickered over to Sonya, who also bowed her head in guilt.

Newt's hands stilled over Aris's and his face went a little blank as he sensed something wrong; as his intuition told him what was wrong. A sense of dread had similarly trickled into Rachel's stomach and she turned to look after Thomas. By this time, the brunette boy had reached the back of the carriage, and his face as he turned slowly around to face them once more confirmed what they had feared.

Thomas swallowed thickly, needing to wait to compose himself, before he finally spoke in a broken voice from the very end of the carriage,

"He's not here."

* * *

"All right, listen up."

Vince stood on a large crate at the head of the group of rescued, bruised, and shaken teenagers who now stood huddled with their injuries treated and out in fresh air for the first time in a very long time. He surveyed the group, his tone sympathetic but also commanding and firm as he addressed the latest additions to their motley group.

"I know you've all been through hell. I wish I could say our troubles are over. But we're not through this yet. WCKD's still out there. They're not giving up. 'Cause you got something they want."

Vince looked around the group, taking time to look directly at as many pairs of eyes as he could as he spoke.

"They took you because you're immune to a plague that's wiping out the human race. And they think you're worth sacrificing to find a cure. Well, I don't. So in two days, when we get this tub of rust seaworthy," he pointed to the ship tied to the edge of the harbour, hidden mostly from sight inside the abandoned warehouse the Right Arm had fashioned into a garage of sorts.

"We're getting the hell outta here. We're gonna go to a place where WCKD will never find you. A place you can start over. A place you can call home."

Awed murmurs broke out amongst the rescued teens as they let Vince's words sink in, as they began to hope at last that the nightmare that was all of their realities would soon cease. And Rachel, watching from a warehouse on the side, bit her lip unhappily as she saw Newt's head turn to look after Thomas while the brunette boy turned bitterly away from the sight of his failure.

* * *

The teenage friends, old and new, sat huddled in one of the warehouses.

Sonya and Aris were wrapped tightly in thick blankets and seated on the comfortable chairs. Harriet sat beside her friends with worry in her dark eyes as she looked at how pale and haunted they looked while Thomas, Frypan and Newt sat on various boxes and crates in a loose half-circle around the two rescued teens and Brenda leant back against a pile of crates in the far corner. Rachel finally returned, carrying two hot mugs of tea.

"Here." She handed the mugs to her friends. "Drink this."

They took the mugs gratefully, clutching the warm drinks in their hands with murmured thanks. Rachel seated herself beside Newt on his box, and she watched as Aris took a sip of the tea.

He caught the way she was eyeing the horrific bruise on his eye and he cracked a smile as he joked, "Took you guys long enough to rescue us."

Rachel's lips twitched into a smile as well while the others chuckled, all of them relaxing just minutely.

"It's good to see you, too, bud." Thomas said softly before he gestured at Aris's face. "So what happened?"

"I fought back." Aris explained before he amended, "Tried to, anyway."

His head ducked and Sonya sighed as she added, "You're lucky you found us at all. They had us on the move a lot. It felt like something big was happening."

"Any idea where they were heading?" Newt asked, leaning forward slightly.

Aris and Sonya exchanged looks before the former admitted, "All I know is they kept talking about a city."

That caused frowns all around. Harriet and Rachel exchanged puzzled glances as Thomas and Newt did the same. It was Harriet who broached the subject carefully as she said slowly, "I didn't think there were any cities left."

"That's because there aren't." Brenda spoke up for the first time since they'd returned to the base. "Not still standing, anyway."

Newt's frown deepened as he and Rachel looked at each other. Rachel's eyes flickered over to Thomas next when the dark-haired boy asked in a confused voice, "Okay, wait. What about Minho? Why wasn't he on the train?"

Aris appeared to have been dreading this question and he swallowed. Sonya took his hand, squeezing it in comfort as Aris answered in a small voice, "I'm sorry, Thomas."

Rachel paled and Thomas stiffened; they sensed what was about to come. Newt's hand moved to clasp Rachel's, seeking comfort that she gave as willing as she took the same from him at Aris's whispered confession.

"He was."

* * *

Thomas disappeared after Aris's confession. The group broke off into various smaller groups not long after, everyone needing to deal with what had happened separately.

Harriet stayed with Aris and Sonya in the warehouse while Frypan wandered off in a daze at the knowledge that they had been so close, _so_ close to rescuing Minho… and they had failed him. Rachel was in a similar daze, the knowledge that they had been one carriage away from saving Minho stinging far more than she would have liked. She and Newt had retired to an alcove just outside, in-between two warehouses, and it was there that Newt finally showed his own frustration.

"Bloody hell. Bloody _hell_." Newt muttered, his accent thickening with his emotion, and Rachel shook herself from her haze. "We were so close to saving him and then we missed it, we missed him and took the bloody wrong-"

Newt cut himself off and he glanced at Rachel.

"Not that I regret who we did rescue." Newt said quietly, his gaze searching hers apologetically. "But-"

"No, I get it." Rachel reassured, sighing. "I can't believe it myself. And while I'm happy we have Aris and Sonya back, I'm not any happier that Minho's still in WCKD's horrible clutches."

Newt rubbed a weary hand down his face before he sat down glumly beside her. Rachel took his hand in hers, rubbing it soothingly while Newt leant back against the warehouse wall.

"We'll find him, Newt." Rachel tried to comfort and Newt shook his head.

"We're running out of time." He answered heavily. "Vince's gonna take these guys to the Safe Haven as soon as possible and we can't ask him to wait; but without him and the Right Arm, the chances that we can save Minho..."

Newt rubbed his eyes tiredly.

Rachel leant against Newt's shoulder, feeling equally dejected. He had a point - they couldn't ask Vince to keep risking everyone else's safety. If he could get the boat going, it was only right that he leave for the Safe Haven. But if he did… _How would we be able to rescue Minho with just us, if we couldn't do it even with the Right Arm's support?_

Rachel's eyes swept absently around as she contemplated, but she paused as she spotted a familiar, short figure.

Brenda was sitting on a table in the warehouse across from them, her foot raised on a jeep she was fixing up as she chatted with Jorge. It was stunning to think that just six months ago, the woman had looked to be on the verge of death (although really, her fate would have been worse). A concerned Vince had kept Brenda under quarantine for a solid two months before they realized she was indeed fine and didn't appear to be going to have a relapse of any sort. She was still perfectly healthy, and Rachel almost admired her for fighting off the deadly virus so effectively.

Seeing the direction of her gaze, Newt was only too happy to switch topics.

"Brenda seems to be doing really well." He noted.

"Yeah." Rachel sighed, turning back to the British youth. "She's really lucky Mary knew what to do and that Thomas was an O-blood type and his blood could be administered fairly easily."

"More like it's a good thing Mary remembered his blood type." Newt added thoughtfully, before shaking his head. "How she remembered his out of all the kids they were testing..."

"Because he was different." Rachel answered quietly, looking at her hands with a small frown. "It's only natural she would remember him. She did owe him after all."

Newt glanced at her sharply as Rachel seemed to fall into thought.

"Do you remember anything else?" Newt questioned, glancing at Rachel with a look that was between curious and concerned.

But the brunette girl shook her head.

"Nothing recently." She answered, sighing as she leant her head back on Newt's shoulder. "I haven't dreamt anything in a while."

He shifted a little, letting her settle more comfortably against him while moving one of his arms around her shoulder. She loved when he did that; being in Newt's arms was the only time when Rachel felt even a little safe anymore and his constant warmth had been comforting during the last six or so months of hardships.

"Could be because you've not been sleeping enough." Newt commented, his tone light but with an undercurrent of reproach. "You don't sleep long enough to dream."

She turned her head to look up at him, and his hand traced under Rachel's grey eyes where she had almost permanent dark circles. Rachel just snorted.

"And the pot called the kettle black." She answered, her eyes flickering down to observe the purple-ish shadows that were also almost permanently etched under Newt's brown eyes.

Newt smiled wryly.

"Guilty." He said lightly, making Rachel's smile widen.

The pair sat there for the rest of the afternoon, talking occasionally or simply enjoying the pleasant silence as they never once let go of their entwined hands.

* * *

" _Rachel. Rach!"_

 _Rachel turned in surprise as Thomas sprinted up to her._

" _Thomas?" She asked, confused. While the two were sort of friends (or as close to friends as two people not in love who had designed Mazes to kill other children in the search of a cure for the Flares could be), it was highly unusual for Thomas to seek her out. He was always with Teresa and Rachel noted that the dark-haired girl was nowhere in sight now as Thomas came up beside her which made this even odder._

 _And then she saw his face._

" _Thomas, what's wrong?" Rachel asked, alarmed by the intensity of his expression as he glanced around quickly to make sure they were alone._

 _He looked back at her with serious brown eyes, and Rachel felt a jolt. Whatever he was going to say, she had a feeling it was going to change her life forever._

" _Rachel, I need your help."_

* * *

"Rach. Rach, wake up."

Rachel bolted awake as a hand shook her gently. Peering up sleepily, she asked, "Newt? What's going on?"

"Tommy's gathering us for an emergency meeting." He explained. "Didn't think you'd want to miss it."

"You guessed right." She answered hurrying to grab her shoes and she followed him out.

"I still didn't want to wake you - you barely get enough sleep as is." He muttered as they headed quickly for the warehouse where Vince had set up a makeshift office over the last few months.

"Think of it this way - if you hadn't woken me up, I would avoid sleeping from now on in case I missed anything else." Rachel answered.

Newt muttered darkly to himself but she ignored him as they quickly and quietly entered Vince's office. As they slipped inside, Rachel wondered what could have prompted Thomas to call the meeting this time.


	3. Heading

"There."

Thomas jabbed his finger on the map he'd spread hastily onto the meeting table.

"That's it."

They all stared down in silence at the point where Thomas's finger was stabbing. It was a map everyone in the room was well-acquainted with, having spent months poring over it and then poring over it some more. The map itself was mostly clean, the team having been careful not to make any long-lasting markings that could be interpreted should the map ever fall into the wrong hands. Now, many months since they'd first gathered together to look at this same map, Rachel was fairly certain that she could draw the damned thing from memory. But even so, she had no idea what Thomas was indicating to.

"It's a few hundred miles." Thomas went on, his eyes focused mostly on Vince, who admittedly would be the hardest but arguably the most important to convince.

"Based on the railways, everything that Aris told us, that's gotta be where they're headed. That's where they're taking Minho."

Vince pursed his lips, a discouraging sign. But Thomas ploughed on determinedly as he gestured around the room, saying grimly, "We take everyone who can fight. Follow the roads where we can. We can make it back within a week."

Rachel internally groaned at his words, while Vince looked up from the map to Thomas with a mixture of incredulity and dejection.

"A week?" Vince repeated before he gestured around. "It took us six _months_ to get here. We got over 100 kids here now. We can't just hang out here forever after what we just pulled."

The leader of the Right Arm shook his head and he looked back at the map and then Thomas as he continued in a heavy and skeptical tone, "You wanna wander off to some random point on the map. You don't even know what's there."

"I do."

Rachel turned in surprise with everyone else to look at Jorge, who had been the one to speak. The once leader of the black market traders was always a valued contributor to recon or rescue ops alike but he had tended to keep mostly to himself during any meetings since they had joined the Right Arm. It was very rare for him to contribute any ideas beside the mild suggestion, so Rachel watched curiously as the man stepped forward from the corner where he usually sat.

"It's been a few years, but I've been there." He explained, looking first at Vince and then at Thomas. "The Last City. That's what WCKD called it."

Rachel and Newt exchanged looks at that, but they returned their focus to Jorge, listening carefully as the man explained to Thomas, "It was their whole base of operations. If that city is still standing, that's the last place you wanna go, hermano."

He pointed at the map as he finished grimly.

"That's the lion's den."

"It's nothing we haven't done before." Thomas countered, and Vince threw up his hands in exasperation.

"Yeah, with months of planning, and reliable information, the element of surprise, none of which we have now!" The Right Arm leader cried.

Rachel had to admit the man had a point. The odds weren't great… but neither had been escaping the Maze. The only question, at least in Rachel's mind, was not what the probability of success was, because that had never really been in their favour anyway. The question was: was it worth risking everything?

Thomas's answer was clear.

"Vince, I've thought this through. Would you just hear me out?" The teenager pleaded, but the Right Arm leader finally put his foot down.

"The last time we went off half-cocked... I lost everything." Vince countered sharply. "You remember that?"

As Thomas visibly wilted, the older man gave a defeated sigh. With a slightly more apologetic but still unwavering determination, Vince said quietly, "Look, I know it's Minho. All right? But you can't ask me to put those kids on the line for one man."

He shook his head.

"I won't do it."

Thomas frowned unhappily, but the radio behind Brenda suddenly squaked.

"Searching the grid now."

Everyone's heads whipped around sharply toward the radio, all of them listening to the hijacked system intently.

"A is completed. Scanning B-sector now."

"Shit!" Thomas swore while Rachel looked up in alarm as they all heard the distant humming and whirring of a Berg approaching.

"Hit the lights!"

The group scrambled, everyone darting away to help as the entire camp moved. The dim lights they had lit around the camp, barely enough to avoid being plunged into complete darkness, were now being doused quickly while everything that was still uncovered - crates, stolen WCKD truck containers, and their recently acquired train carriage - was hastily covered with loose rags to blend in with the abandoned port surroundings or covered with dirt-coloured bumpy material that would pass as part of the rocky terrain if looked at from a distance.

White searchlights approached as they dashed about, everyone being careful not to be in the open. Rachel had just finished helping her group cover the supplies carriage the Right Arm was in the process of moving onto the rebuilt ship, when the Berg finally descended upon the camp.

"Hide!"

Rachel, Frypan and Newt ducked for cover, barely managing to slip into the shadows in time before the searchlights flooded over where they had been just moments earlier. Rachel held her breath, heart pounding, while the Berg continued to slowly circle above. She spotted Thomas not far away, hidden with Vince between two similar containers.

She snuck her way over, joining them swiftly while the Berg continued it's path above them.

"They never come out here." Vince muttered as Rachel joined them.

"They've not been as pissed off by us as now." Rachel replied grimly as she glanced briefly at the train carriage they had stolen just earlier that day.

Vince's lined face was drawn and Thomas let out a small breath.

"You're right." He murmured softly, looking at Vince. "We can't stay here."

Rachel placed a hand on Thomas's shoulder in comfort before turning her head back and intending to look toward the Berg that was thankfully turning away although they weren't quite out of the woods yet. But her eyes landed on Newt as she moved her head and she paused at the odd look on his face. He was also looking back at her, and for the briefest moments as the searchlights flashed above before moving on, lighting up their faces briefly although they couldn't be seen from above, Rachel thought she saw irritation and a curious dismay on Newt's face.

And then they were in darkness again as the Berg moved on. Leaving Rachel to ponder what she had seen.

* * *

It was a much quieter group that tidied up the meeting room before heading to bed that night.

Thomas's expression indicated that he was preoccupied and somewhat distracted as he drifted off. Frypan had headed off after speaking briefly with Newt but Rachel pulled Newt aside as everyone split up toward their sleeping quarters.

"Rach?" Newt questioned. "What's wrong?"

"I wanted to ask you that." Rachel answered, tilting her head up to catch the taller blonde's eye searchingly. "You've been looking and acting a little weird lately. Is everything okay?"

Newt seemed to realize what she was talking about, however, and his quick, "Everything's fine." did nothing to convince Rachel. She frowned.

"Newt, you know you can tell me anything, right?" She pointed out and he squirmed a little.

"I know." He answered and Rachel countered, "So… why won't you?"

"Look, Rach, it's nothing - it's stupid, all right? Please just drop it." Newt sighed. Rachel frowned, trying to piece things together. She'd thought he was stressed about WCKD, but that wasn't stupid. She thought back to the brief moments in the past few months when Newt had acted a little out of character or shown, trying to find a common denominator. The only thing she could think of was...

"... You weren't…?" Rachel began, somewhat disbelievingly and Newt tensed as he glanced at her.

"Weren't what?" He asked, quite defensively, and Rachel eyed him.

"You weren't… _jealous_ of Thomas… were you?" Rachel asked. That was the only common denominator - she'd always been around Thomas, been friendly or close to him. It sounded absurd and the words sounded even more ridiculous out loud than they had in her head, but Newt was instantly defensive.

"'Course not." He scoffed, but his eyes were tight, and Rachel sighed.

"I would hope not." She commented lightly, before she pushed up on her toes and pressed a soft kiss on Newt's cheek. "I would think you have better sense than that."

He pursed his lips, briefly debating lying through his teeth, but ultimately Newt sighed and shot her a wry grin.

"Sorry." He admitted and Rachel smiled.

"Don't worry about it - we all get to be an idiot sometimes." She replied lightly. Newt snorted but he leant over and pressed a kiss to her temple.

"I'm only an idiot for you, love." He answered, making Rachel blush. She cleared her throat.

"Well, um, good." She coughed while Newt looked amused. Rachel sighed and buried her head into his shoulder before admitting, "And just so you know, I'm only an idiot for you too."

"Good." Newt answered as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. This was the closest they had come to saying anything; admitting anything. For a moment, they were quite, each silently contemplating on that - but then their current circumstances caught up with them again as they spotted Thomas's shadow skulking around in the dark.

"We'd better hurry - I made us late." Rachel muttered and Newt glanced at her.

"You sure you don't want to stay with your friends?" He asked, part of him hoping she would choose to stay - choose to be safe. Rachel shot him a wry smile.

"And miss out on following Thomas on another wild goose chase? Are you kidding?" She teased and Newt chuckled.

"Yeah… sometimes I wonder why I don't just shut him up in a cage or something before he can cause more trouble." He mused and Rachel shrugged.

"Well, this _is_ the stick who led us to the Right Arm based on a ghost story." She pointed out.

"Nah," Newt corrected. "That was all Jorge; Tommy was the bloody shank who passed out drunk in a drug den."

Rachel almost laughed but she glanced around at the quiet night and sighed.

"Now we really are pushing it - I'll meet you by the car later."

Rachel kissed Newt on the cheek, but he caught her hand as she made to go.

"Just one." He murmured before he leaned down and kissed her.

Rachel's heart leapt before her eyes fluttered closed and she returned the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck as he pulled her closer by the hips. It felt so… right, being there in Newt's arms.

This wasn't their first kiss - over the course of six months, they'd had a few after particularly difficult or daring missions. She still remembered the first time Newt had kissed her: they'd been tracking WCKD's movements and almost ended up caught. In that moment of fear, terrified they were about to be captured and taken back to hell, Newt had pulled Rachel in for a fierce kiss that had set her innards on fire. The second time, Rachel had pulled Newt in for a kiss after they'd had an unfortunate run-in with some Cranks, and the subsequent kisses had followed from equally unpleasant circumstances.

But, Rachel reflected, this was the first time they'd kissed without being in or just climbing out of mortal danger. This was the first time their kiss was unhurried (although now they were going to be late) and, when they finally pulled back slightly, the first one where neither of them apologized or walked off hastily in embarrassment. The first kiss where she wasn't left confused or feeling awkward but wanting more.

Rachel opened grey eyes to stare into darkened brown that reflected the deep hunger that had stirred in both of them.

"Maybe just one more." Newt murmured.

Rachel didn't even bother to reply as she pulled him down at the same time Newt leant down and their lips met in another, hungrier kiss.

* * *

They parted reluctantly to fetch their respective packs before their agreed rendezvous with Frypan.

Newt had looked like he were on the verge of something but he ended up just kissing her temple again instead and telling her he'd see her soon. Rachel knew her face was probably flushed but she had never been happier as she returned to the warehouse where she slept with Harriet and several other girls. Between searching for Minho and rescuing as many kids as they could from WCKD, there hadn't been time to talk about the feelings both she and Newt knew had been growing since the first time they'd met. But now, finally, it seemed there was a chance… a chance at happiness for both of them.

Rachel shook her head to clear it - she needed to focus for now. Only allowing herself to linger on the after-effects of Newt's kiss, she returned to her sleeping quarters where she saw the other girls were asleep as expected. Sonya was now with them too, and Rachel saw the blonde sleeping in the corner, her skinny shoulders rising and falling softly. Rachel smiled sadly; Sonya had been such a good friend who deserved so much better, and she truly hoped she would see the blonde again.

It was only after she'd gathered her things in her backpack - the same one she'd carried across the Scorch after escaping WCKD with Jorge six months ago - that Rachel realized Harriet wasn't in her bed. The lump that she'd assumed was Harriet wasn't moving and closer examination revealed it to be a bunch of pillows and blankets.

It was after this realization hit that Rachel looked to the doorway to see Harriet standing with her arms folded and her brow raised. Jerking her head to indicate Rachel to come outside with her, Harriet stepped out.

With a sinking heart, Rachel followed Harriet as the dark-skinned girl led them just a little way away from where they might be overheard before the former Group B leader turned to face Rachel.

"You're going to rescue that boy - Minho."

It wasn't a question, but Rachel replied softly, "Yes."

"You're really going to go with those sticks?" Harriet asked, looking at Rachel searchingly.

Rachel nodded.

"I'm sorry, Harriet, but I can't just wait to see if they'll come back. I've been through hell with those guys, same as with you and the girls and Aris. I'm one of them now, just like Minho. I _have_ to go; I have to bring him back." Rachel said honestly.

Harriet examined the younger girl before she sighed and slowly nodded.

"I understand." She said, unhappily but without accusation. "I don't want you to go, but I can't stop you just as no-one would have been able to stop me if it were Sonya or Aris or _you_ still trapped in WCKD."

Rachel nodded gratefully and Harriet looked back at the warehouses sadly.

"I'd go with you, even if I didn't really know Minho. But I can't leave Sonya and Aris yet, not when they're so weak. Who knows when we might need to protect them. So."

Harriet looked back at Rachel, her dark gaze serious.

"Promise me you'll do what you can to come back to us safe, Rachel. Swear it to me."

Rachel's grey eyes softened, and she nodded.

"I promise to try." She swore, but Harriet shook her head.

"No, trying's not good enough." She insisted. "Promise you'll do everything in your power to come back."

Rachel smiled a little sadly, but she promised, "I'll do my best."

Harriet's eyes were filled with regret before she reached forward and hugged Rachel.

"Good luck, Rach." She murmured before releasing her friend.

"Thanks Harriet." Rachel whispered.

She watched Harriet re-enter their sleeping quarters and briefly closed her eyes. This could easily be the last time they would see each other. Did she regret it? Rachel's eyes opened. No. No, she didn't.

Shouldering her pack more securely, she turned and walked in the opposite direction from her friend. They were parting ways for now, but who knew? They may meet again. After all, Rachel mused as she glanced up at the few stars that twinkled in the night sky. They had a heading and a path back to the people she'd come to associate as home.


	4. Shadows

Rachel quickly made her way over to where the few vehicles that the Right Arm owned were hidden inside an abandoned warehouse.

Technically, the vehicles were scattered across several warehouses just in case anything happened to one storage. But she and Newt were certain they knew which car Thomas would go for - the jeep. It was one of the few completely enclosed vehicles that was still higher above the ground and good for rough terrain, but also not as big as the one truck that they owned. Owned being a loose term for stolen in this case.

Newt was already waiting, and she could see the shadow inside the car. She smiled as she came up beside him and Newt tucked her under his arm as she leant against the truck beside him.

"What took you so long?" Newt muttered while they waited and Rachel scoffed.

"He's not even here yet - I think that's what we should ask him." She murmured back as she tossed her bag into the back of the jeep. She saw the hint of a smile on Newt's face before they lapsed into silence, waiting.

They didn't have to wait long as not five minutes later, Thomas arrived, hastily zipping up his own backpack. Newt cocked a brow at the dark-haired boy's appearance before he called out, "Where do you think you're going then?"

Thomas started, absolutely surprised when Rachel flipped on the small lamp beside them to reveal herself and Newt to Thomas. The raven-haired boy blinked rapidly before he sighed.

"Newt…"

Thomas trailed off, unsure how to even begin convincing them.

Newt strode forward, warning his friend, "Don't be a twat about it."

Thomas grimaced before he stilled in shock as Newt added, "We're already in."

He took Thomas's bag from the boy's slackened grip while Thomas gaped at the pair. Rachel grinned at Thomas's gawking before jerking her head at the jeep.

"Hurry up - you already kept us waiting." She joked, and that seemed to snap Thomas out of it. Mostly.

"No."

Thomas shook his head and the self-proclaimed non-couple glanced back at him as the dark-haired teen stood his ground.

"No, not this time. Look, even if we find Minho, there's no guarantee we make it back from this."

Both Rachel and Newt raised their brows at Thomas's words in an eerily similar manner. Thomas was beginning to think they spent too much time together, especially when Rachel walked over to the jeep door while Newt replied dryly, "Well, you'll need all the help you can get then, won't you?"

Rachel opened the door at his words, as if on cue; and Thomas realized all his friends must be spending far too much time together when Frypan beamed out from the driver's seat, perfectly timed and set-up.

He began shaking his head again, about to protest, when Rachel piped up, "It's not really your decision anymore, Thomas."

Thomas paused to look at her and then Newt as the blond finished, "We started this together. May as well end it that way, too."

Thomas looked from Frypan's smiling face to Rachel's equally amused one and finally to Newt's firm expression. And he exhaled.

"Okay." He agreed.

His friends smiled before their eyes all steeled in equal determination as Thomas finished firmly.

"Let's go get him back."

* * *

It was a much more subdued group that settled into the jeep as Frypan carefully drove them out of the warehouse, the dim headlights of the car providing just enough light for them to get away from the Right Arm base without attracting attention.

Once they were out of range of the base and anything they might crash into, Frypan shut the lights off. Using only the moonlight that shone done on the world below, the former Glader pulled out onto one of the many winding, wild road that wormed its way through the desert sand while Thomas leant against the window in the passenger seat beside him.

"You guys should get some sleep." Frypan suddenly commented as he drove. "We'll all need it if we want to keep driving all the way to the Last City."

"Good idea." Newt agreed quietly from the back while Rachel lifted her head from where she had been resting it on Newt's shoulder. "Let's sleep in pairs though, in case one of us falls asleep while driving."

"I'll stay up with Frypan." Thomas offered as he glanced toward his friends. "You two get some sleep."

"Thanks, Tommy."

Newt leant back while Rachel leant her head back against Newt's shoulder as the pair sat side-by-side. His hand moved to stroke the top of her head - within minutes, she was out like a light.

* * *

 _Rachel walked down a white, brightly-lit corridor in a familiar building that she couldn't recall having been in. The walls were almost entirely made of glass, most looking into other rooms - meeting rooms, laboratories, workstations - but sometimes she could glimpse the view from outside. A tall dark building on the other side of where she was, a blinking red light far in the distance like a beacon in the blanket of night; but Rachel wasn't interested in any of that as she strode stiffly but with purpose down what had at the time been a familiar path._

 _Rachel turned around a corner, only to stop when she saw a familiar figure blocking her path._

" _Teresa."_

 _The name fell from Rachel's lips bitterly, but the darker-haired beauty looked even bitterer as she stared down the younger teenage girl._

" _How could you, Rachel?" Teresa asked - no, reproached. "Why would you do that? Why didn't you stop Thomas?"_

 _Teresa paused as Rachel laughed without humour._

" _The fact that you have to ask that says everything about you, Teresa." Rachel replied._

 _She made to walk on, but Teresa grabbed her arm roughly._

" _What does that mean?" The older teen demanded, forcefully turning Rachel so that the two girls were face to face. "Why won't you just tell me? You've always been like this. You won't just speak up and say what you think, you sit and you stew silently but this is going too far! You and Thomas are in more than just trouble! So for once, can you not just answer my question directly?"_

 _Rachel's jaw clenched and she raised blazing grey eyes to meet Teresa's worried blue ones._

" _You want to know why, Teresa?"_

 _Rachel spoke in a quiet voice that was far more terrible than if she had screamed with the way her anger and despair coloured her every word despite the carefully controlled manner with which she spoke._

" _It was because I was sick and tired of seeing people who were once my friends_ dying _; of seeing them suffer and for what? Three years - that's how long it's been. Three damn years, and there's been_ nothing. _Nothing, but pain and fighting and the deaths of hundreds of innocents. I can't even look at myself in the mirror anymore without seeing all their faces as they scream and ask for help, for mercy, for_ anything _that will save them - Mel, Nick, Angie, Lola, Justin, Stephen, Tiffany..."_

 _Rachel had to stop, unable to continue given how much her voice trembled. She ran a hand through her own dark brown hair, unwilling to close her eyes. Because every time that she did, she saw all those girls and boys, screaming and crying as they were slaughtered brutally, limb by limb, and for naught._

 _Teresa however had other pressing matters on her mind._

" _What about Thomas?" Teresa asked, and Rachel just looked at Teresa._

" _Thomas?" Rachel repeated questioningly._

" _Why would he do it? Why would he betray WCKD as well?" Teresa asked beseechingly._

 _Rachel just looked at the other girl, her silent stare an answer enough. Teresa's grip on Rachel's arm slackened as she understood._

" _He felt the same way as you did." Teresa murmured, before her expression fell._

" _But why you? Why didn't he ask my advice?" Teresa whispered._

 _Rachel looked away. Walking passed the older girl, she answered quietly, "Because he knew you won't ever understand."_

 _Rachel didn't look back at the raven-haired girl as she continued to walk away, leaving Teresa to stare after the younger girl in shock._

 _The corridor swirled and morphed into a room; or rather a lab. Rachel was sitting quietly as a doctor worked nearby, filling a syringe while a nurse wiped the back of Rachel's neck to prepare her. Beside her stood Ava Paige._

 _The Chancellor was dressed in her signature all white, but her pale hair was down in an almost painfully-straight curtain. She gazed at Rachel with the look a disappointed mother might have at a reckless, rebellious teenage daughter. But Ava wasn't her mother, and Rachel ignored the look and felt no guilt toward the woman as she sat without protest to face her punishment._

" _Rachel..." Ava sighed._

 _It was quite interesting, Rachel mused to herself. There was once a time when Ava sighing her name like that - so regretful, so disappointed - would have made Rachel feel instantly reproached and even despairing. When she was younger, she had done everything she could to please her foster mother and she had hated feeling like she had failed Ava._

 _But now, Rachel felt strangely peaceful as she hadn't been in a very long time._

" _Why would you and Thomas betray us like this?"_

 _Rachel didn't reply - what was there left to say? Instead, she met Ava's gaze and Ava shook her head at the girl with disappointment when she read the accusation and the unrepentance in Rachel's grey eyes._

" _Rachel." Ava said smoothly. "We are going to save_ lives _with this research. Think of all the people we could have saved but you have set us back with your carelessness. Do you truly not see that?"_

" _WCKD is good." Rachel intoned, but she couldn't quite keep the sarcasm out of her voice._

 _Ava gazed at her sadly._

" _I'm so disappointed in you, Rachel." Ava said softly, her blue eyes soft. "You and Thomas..."_

* * *

Rachel jerked upright, waking with a start and jolting Newt awake as well. The former second-in-command's arm wrapped around Rachel tightly, protectively, as he instinctively looked around for the cause of her alarm.

"Bad dream?" Thomas asked, glancing back at the pair, and Rachel let out a deep breath.

"Yeah..." She muttered.

Newt relaxed slightly beside her but he couldn't quite keep the worry out of his voice as he asked carefully, "You all right?"

"I don't know." Rachel admitted.

Newt's lips curved down unhappily while Thomas glanced over at them briefly. His expression was thoughtful as he looked Rachel over, before he looked at Frypan.

"I think it's time we switched up." Thomas offered. "You've been driving for a couple of hours already."

Frypan glanced back at his friend and then briefly at the couple in the back before he nodded.

"I'll drive." Rachel added quietly although loudly enough that they all heard her.

Newt examined Rachel as Frypan drew the jeep to a stop, but no-one said anything else. After months together, they had grown used to the familiar pattern that occurred. Frypan was used to the anxious tension that filled Newt whenever Rachel awoke from her nightmares and he let them work things out without his intervention. Rachel suspected from Thomas's own dark circles and the way he seemed to dislike falling asleep as much as she did that the boy knew a little too well how she felt. But he never said anything and this time was no different as the group checked their surroundings carefully before shuffling their seating arrangement around.

Thomas and Frypan settled into the back, each leaning against the closest window, while Newt strapped himself into the passenger seat as Rachel took the wheel. In silence, the group drove onward once more - or mostly in silence. It wasn't long before Frypan's snores filled the jeep but it was only after Thomas finally slipped into a fitful sleep that Newt broached the subject with Rachel.

"What was it about this time?" Newt asked softly and Rachel sighed.

"It was similar to the last dream I had." She admitted, keeping her eyes on the road. "The same building and Ava Paige appeared again to tell me how disappointed she was with me and Thomas. I think it has to do with what Dr. Mary said before, how we gave up the coordinates for all of WCKD's bases to the Right Arm."

"But…?" Newt prompted as Rachel seemed to fall into silent thought. She sighed and glanced back to check Thomas was still sleeping before looking back at the road before them.

"I also saw Teresa." Rachel said softly, causing Newt to stiffen just a little. "Or rather, I remembered an argument I had with her."

"You argued?" Newt asked in a purposefully calm tone that still held a hint of his unease at the mention of the girl that had betrayed them all.

Rachel nodded.

"It was about the same thing - how Thomas and I apparently betrayed WCKD by handing over all of the base coordinates to Dr. Mary." Rachel explained, before briefly recounting her dream.

Newt frowned as she spoke hesitantly and it didn't escape Rachel's notice how he looked surprised before his expression became strained at specific names she disclosed from her dream.

"You knew him then? The boy, Nick?" Rachel asked when she was done and after Newt had digested her words in silence.

Newt sighed and nodded.

"He was the leader of the Glade before Alby." Newt admitted quietly. "He was the reason we pretty much even made it passed the first couple months."

"What happened to him?" Rachel asked quietly, sensing there was something more to the story. Not that she was certain she _wanted_ to know… but at this point, she figured she had enough horrors in her life. What was one more, if in exchange she could learn more about Newt and help him with the burdens he himself carried?

Newt paused for a long moment, as if weighing whether he should share this particular memory with Rachel, before he finally responded.

"It was maybe a year after we first arrived in the Glade. We were starting to run out of ideas on how to escape but still hoping there was another way beside the Griever-filled Maze. Nick suggested that we try going down the tunnel that the Box came up from. He… volunteered to take the risk and we lowered him down the shaft with some rope from the Box."

Rachel remained silent as Newt took a deep, shuddering breath that he let out in a whoosh of air before he finished his story tiredly.

"After a while of lowering him, something felt odd. There was a noise and suddenly Nick stopped responding to us and his rope felt… lighter. Alby ordered us to pull him up and when we did… he was already dead. The bottom half of his body was cut clean through."

Rachel flinched and then shuddered as she pictured the faceless boy sawed in half. And then she pictured the reactions of the rest of the group in that clearing and her heart went out to Newt instantly. At the same time, the self-loathing that had begun the more she dreamt, the more she _remembered_ , about the time from before her memories were wiped reared its ugly head once more, making her voice unbearably tight.

"Newt, I'm so sorry." Rachel whispered.

He heard the darker undertone in her voice, however; Newt had become attuned to it after Rachel began to fall into depression until Newt forced her to talk to him about her dreams.

"Don't do that, love." Newt murmured softly, reaching over to cover Rachel's hand in his own. "It wasn't your fault."

"Apparently that's not true." Rachel reminded Newt glumly, closing her eyes briefly before looking back out at the road as her broken memories haunted her. "We both know that I was a part of it, maybe even helped make those-those-"

"And then you helped free us. All of us." Newt pointed out firmly. "You risked your own life to save us. That proves that you and Tommy are nothing like them."

Rachel didn't look too convinced, but she allowed Newt to help pull her away from the dark thoughts plaguing her mind and her soul. They never quite went away but whenever she was around Newt, they would disappear at least for a while. She could be happy, could breathe and feel at peace. Rachel knew why, but she said nothing, unwilling to risk breaking her relationship with Newt, whatever it may be.

So with a slight exhale, she gave a small smile and simply said, "Thanks, Newt."

She glanced over as she spoke; their eyes met briefly and Rachel noticed as something uncertain flitted through Newt's brown orbs.

"I-" Newt began, before he broke off. He hesitated, and Rachel glanced at him again curiously while she drove.

"What?" She asked, wondering what was making Newt pause.

He seemed to struggle for a brief moment and Rachel asked in concern, "Newt?"

"It's nothing." He sighed at last.

Rachel frowned at that, thinking of how he'd cut himself off before, but Newt just squeezed her hand before letting go as he said softly, "You know I'll always be here for you, right?"

Her heart instantly picked up at his words and Rachel was certain she swooned just a little bit. Trying to keep her voice level, she replied quietly, "And you know I'll always be here for you."

Newt's answering smile made her lose her breath. They didn't say much more that night, but Rachel couldn't help but pray, as the moon streamed its white light down on them, that she had spoken the truth. That she wouldn't be proven wrong. That she wouldn't lose Newt the way she'd already lost too much.


	5. Unprepared

They had switched watch thrice more, Newt and Rachel taking a nap while Thomas drove before Newt took over; by the time they reached what had once been a tunnel on a major highway, Frypan was once again back in the driver's seat while Newt and Rachel rested in the back.

Neither was sleeping anymore, both too anxious to sleep more than the few hours they had managed to squeeze in. But despite this, the group was quiet as Frypan slowed their _borrowed_ jeep down to carefully approach the dark, creepy remaining structure from civilizations of old. In front of the tunnel were barbed wires, fences and metal roadblocks that had long ago been torn aside by (Rachel assumed) frenzied, mindless Cranks. It left a pretty straight path for their car to pass through, but in all honesty none of them really felt the inclination to do so.

Frypan drew the jeep down to a stop a few feet away from the tunnel's mouth, and the group slowly clambered out of the jeep to peer into the darkened tunnel more than a little warily.

"You want us to go in there?" Newt checked, his tone heavy with skepticism as he glanced at Thomas where the boy was also staring at the tunnel glumly.

Thomas reopened the map, checking their path and then triple-checking, while the others peered at the tunnel once more. Rachel could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rising with fear just from staring into the black pit and she could feel Frypan equally tense beside her.

Newt was more resigned - possibly as he was already too used to Thomas and his divergence from conformity - but he couldn't help himself from adding sarcastically, "I don't want to come across as too negative, but if I was a Crank that's exactly where I would be."

Rachel grimaced at the mental image of a Crank dragging it's feet a little as it paced mindlessly to and fro inside the tunnel while Frypan glanced over. Thomas's glum expression only increased as he finally looked up from his map and he admitted with a sigh, "I don't think we have much of a choice."

The dark-haired boy glanced at his friends warily, clearly anticipating an argument. Frypan just hung his head while Newt sighed as he looked back at the tunnel with one hand on his hip. But it was Rachel who spoke up as she looked at the boys.

"Well, then. What are we waiting for?"

All three boys looked at Rachel curiously, wondering what she meant. She gave a wry smile in return before she turned back toward the jeep.

"I'm driving." Rachel announced as she started to walk back toward the driver's seat, her decision having been made once Thomas confirmed the direction. If they had to go through the tunnel to get to Minho, they would just have to do it. Otherwise, their entire journey so far would have been for nothing.

Thomas stared after her while Frypan chuckled lightly in almost incredulity, and his smile widened at Newt's words when the blond boy followed the dark-haired girl.

"All right, then I get shotgun."

Thomas was grateful then for his friends and their unyielding support even in the face of uncertainty. They were all alike in that respect, he reflected. All of them, even Minho, had very different personalities but they all shared at least one thing: once they made their decision (whether impulsively like Thomas or after long, hard thought like Newt), they would see their choice through to the end.

His gratitude aside, however, he couldn't stop the wary anticipation that crept into his stomach as Rachel took them off slowly toward the tunnel. Newt wasn't wrong in his assessment of the tunnel - far from it. Their only hope was the either that any Cranks who had been around would have moved on from the deserted area or that they would be able to get through without disturbing any who might still be lingering in the shadows.

As they entered into the darkness, Rachel touched the headlights… and hesitated.

"We're gonna need some light, love." Newt pointed out, silently soothing her anxiety.

Rachel exhaled deeply but she nodded; and with that, the headlights of the jeep flickered on at the lowest setting. This meant that they couldn't see more than a few feet ahead at most in the dim light but no-one argued. The potential alternative was far worse. And they all seemed to exhale and relax infinitesimally when there was no initial reaction to the lights or the soft rumble of the jeep's engines.

"Uh oh." Thomas muttered as he leant forward from his seat behind Rachel.

They could see a faint outline of some kind of obstacle up ahead, and both Thomas and Newt exchanged looks before they pulled out their flashlights. Each pointed their own out the window of their respective sides of the jeep, shedding just a little bit more extra light on their surroundings to reveal a whole line of backed up vehicles, some crashed into each other or to the tunnel walls from where they had clearly been attacked a very long time ago.

Rachel's hands tightened around the wheel of the jump until her knuckles were white as she observed the cracked glass and crushed metal of the cars which were all now covered in a thick layer of dust.

"Easy, Rach." Newt murmured while Frypan muttered, "Here we go."

"Just take it nice and slow." Newt agreed as he his light out the window while Rachel drove them at walking speed around the first car to their left, circling around it to avoid hitting a truck that was crashed just a little ahead on their right.

After the initial blockade, the path was a bit clearer, with the line of cars sitting mostly to the left and right of the tunnel and leaving a path just wide enough for their jeep to almost make a straight line through.

Still, Rachel didn't dare speed up despite the hairs rising on the back of her neck telling her to just bolt it out of there; they couldn't afford to accidentally wake up a sleeping army now. Not when they had made pretty good progress so far.

As though to contradict her errant thought, a shadow moved right ahead in the middle of their path.

"Woha, whoa, whoa." Newt muttered in warning, one hand reaching over to touch Rachel's knee just as she hit the brakes. The jeep skid to a halt, not quite screeching given the low speed they'd been driving at but still creating more noise than any of them would have liked.

Thankfully, the Crank didn't seem to notice as it continued to just sway from side to side where it stood. But it was still standing right in their path.

Rachel glanced at Newt before they both glanced back to where Frypan was already staring at Thomas. All of them had the same question in their eyes, the same hesitation; Thomas swallowed but gave a firm and reassuring nod.

"It's okay." He said in a quiet voice, trying to convince himself as much as the others. "It's just one, so we'll take it slow, go around him."

Rachel wasn't very reassured but Thomas repeated more determinedly even though he kept his voice low, "We'll be fine."

"Right." Rachel muttered with only a hint of sarcasm.

"Be careful, Rach." Newt murmured as he switched off his light and wound up the window while Rachel took a deep breath before as she watched the Crank ahead.

The Crank had shuffled a little over to the side, creating a path for them and Rachel was just about to lift her foot off the brake when Thomas let out a strange grunt, sounding very much like a quickly swallowed scream, while he backed up right against Frypan.

The entire group whipped around to see a Crank standing pressed right up against Thomas's window, and Rachel almost bit her tongue out in her attempt to prevent herself from screaming. Newt had also flinched back before he grasped Rachel's shoulder tightly as though ready to pull her back if the Crank somehow broke through the window, but the woman showed no signs of aggression as she stared with wide and strangely focused eyes at them.

"Please."

Rachel flinched when the woman spoke, and her skin crawled as the woman began tugging on Thomas's door.

"Please. Help me. Please." The woman continued to beg frantically, glancing from the Crank ahead to the group in the car, her actions and voice growing more and more agitated.

Rachel let out a high-pitched but quiet noise as she bit back a scream when there was another thud, this time on Frypan's window. They all whirled around to see a man, clearly further gone than the woman was but still coherent as he also begged, "Please. Let me in."

"Rach, we gotta go." Thomas said in a low voice as the two almost-Cranks on either side of their car began to pound on the glass and the doors while their cries became screams.

"Please! Open the door! Now!"

Rachel turned forward, intending to go, but she let out a shriek as a Crank rammed itself into her door next before another pounded on Newt's.

"Oh, sh*t!" Newt gasped while Thomas cried, "Rach, go!"

A Crank flung itself in front of the jeep, hitting the car hood and making Rachel hesitate for a fraction of a second.

"Open the door!" The female screamed as she was bit into by another Crank and Thomas yelled, abandoning all pretense of calm.

"Just floor it! Floor it!"

Rachel didn't even hear him in her panic but she did exactly as he said; her foot hit the accelerator as all need for quiet disappeared. The jeep screeched and the tires squealed against the floor as it shot forward, straining to reach full speed as Rachel was insisting from it.

But they hadn't even fully started off when she let out another blood-curling scream when a Crank launched itself onto the car bonnet, blocking her view of the road while it snarled and slammed itself headfirst into the windshield in an attempt to get at them.

"SH*T!" Newt yelled as Rachel drove at full speed blind while Thomas and Frypan whipped their heads back and forth between the Cranks chasing after them and the Crank in front of them that was threatening to kill them before they could even be caught.

"Get it off, get it off!" Frypan yelled at Rachel and Newt yelled back for her, "How, genius?!"

"Shake him off!" Thomas yelled and Rachel screeched, "How, I'm already driving blind, we'll CRASH!"

She swerved as she spoke, just narrowly avoiding hitting a car that had been in their path and that she wouldn't have seen if the Crank hadn't reared up at that moment again to bash itself back down on the windshield.

"Up ahead, on our right!" Newt yelled as he spotted the butt of a truck sticking out in their path and Rachel swerved them to the left just as the Crank smashed it's head down on the glass again.

"There's got to be something we can do to get it off!" Frypan pointed out as though it weren't obvious to them and Newt shouted, "Any ideas are welcome!"

"JUST DO SOMETHING!" Thomas yelled as the Crank on their windshield bashed it's head down again and cracked the glass on their windshield.

Rachel suddenly stomped on the brakes, causing the jeep to come to an abrupt and screeching halt. The Crank, which had leant back before it started to bang back down, went flying off and rolling in front of them, and Rachel shoved her foot onto the gas pedal.

With a horrific shriek and too-clear crunch, the jeep drove right over the Crank. Rachel didn't let up on her speed as she raced them onward while the three boys sat in a moment of stunned silence while they digested what had just happened.

"Well," Newt spoke at last. "That was something."

Rachel almost smiled, as did Thomas. Frypan chuckled, but their moment's levity wore off almost instantly as Thomas yelled suddenly, "LOOK OUT!"

Rachel swore as she swerved suddenly, trying to avoid a traffic drum she hadn't been able to see in the relative darkness. The action was a little too late as the back of the jeep hit the drum, hard, causing the entire car to swivel. Rachel screamed while Newt and Thomas yelled and Frypan shrieked as the jeep's wheels locked and the car went spinning out of control before it hit another traffic drum and was sent crashing over on it's side and then upside down where it skid a little further forward before coming to a halt.

The teenagers inside groaned and coughed as smoke began to rise around the overturned jeep and they tried to regain their bearings after having been bumped about in the crash.

"Everyone okay?" Thomas checked, his voice gruff as he tried to stop his coughing.

The others' own hacking was the only response he got for a second before Rachel groaned.

"My head."

"Rach?" Newt's focus shifted to her instantly as Rachel shook her head, trying to clear it. He could barely see her in the sudden darkness, the jeep's lights having gone out after the crash. Only Thomas's flashlight saved them from being swallowed in darkness although it was currently swinging about a little wildly as Thomas tried to get right side up inside the overturned jeep.

"I think I'm fine." Rachel mumbled as she squinted against the light when Thomas accidentally flashed it right into her eyes.

"Sorry, Rachel." Thomas apologized when he noticed before he gestured to his window. "I'm gonna break this - close your eyes."

Rachel shifted over toward Newt's side where he covered her protectively just in case as Thomas smashed the glass of his car window. The shattered pieces spilled out on either side, falling where Rachel's head had been earlier, and Thomas twisted to kick out the remaining glass completely before he clambered out.

"Watch out for the glass!" Frypan warned as Thomas was forced to scurry out on his forearms, the window too small to allow him to get out any other way. His jacket kept him from getting cut immediately and Thomas crawled forwards, using his arms to keep his body off the ground and the sharp shards on the ground as he pulled himself out.

Frypan moved to follow Thomas out while Newt attempted to kick his door open. Once Thomas was able to pull his feet out the window, he allowed himself to fall in a heap, rolling toward Rachel's door. Unfortunately, her door was stuck as no amount of her kicking or Thomas's pulling would get it open.

"Rachel, it's stuck." He finally grunted as Frypan landed in a heap by his feet. "You're gonna have to go around."

Thomas pulled Frypan up as Rachel turned toward Newt, crawling toward where he was against his own car door while he tried to kick it open. The door finally crashed open and Newt tumbled out just as Thomas and Frypan circled around to his side of the car.

"Newt, you okay?" Thomas checked and the Brit grunted, "Yeah, I think so."

He didn't even get up as he turned on his knees to reach into the car, helping Rachel as she crawled awkwardly along the car windshield to try and get to his side. They all froze for a second as an inhuman scream echoed toward them, reminding them of the Cranks that had been chasing them.

Thomas and Frypan whirled around to stare back the way they had come while Newt hastily reached in and attempted to pull Rachel out of the jeep.

"Wait!" Rachel gasped as she spotted his gun lying on the windshield, which she realized must have fallen out of it's holster during the crash.

"Rach, we gotta move, now!" Thomas yelled as a Crank appeared around the back of a car not a hundred yards from them while Frypan ran around the car and started to dig through the hole Thomas had made in the window.

"Love, leave it!" Newt snapped as he tugged on Rachel's arm, trying to pull her out of the car while she grappled for his gun. "Rachel!"

"Got it!" Rachel gasped as she grabbed hold of the gun before Newt roughly hauled her out. Her foot caught in the doorway as he did, causing her to trip and she collapsed on top of him.

"Come on!" Thomas yelled, grasping Rachel's arm and pulling her to her feet just as the Crank came within ten feet of them. "Rach! Newt!"

Rachel whirled around, raising her gun, when two shots rang out and the Crank collapsed, dead, about five feet away. The trio stared from it to Frypan where he stood on the other side of the overturned jeep, holding a rifle.

"Nice shot, Fry." Thomas finally gasped while Rachel helped Newt to his feet beside her.

"Thanks." Frypan answered as he joined them, and Rachel agreed, "Thanks, Frypan."

More shrieks had the four snapping their heads back up to the road and Thomas raised his flashlight to reveal another two Cranks coming at them and from the sounds behind them the rest of the Cranks weren't far behind.

"Go..." Frypan said slowly as the four slowly backed away before repeating more assertively, "Go!"

He cocked his rifle as Rachel cocked Newt's pistol, and they each fired off once, taking down two of the Cranks, before Newt pulled Rachel sharply.

"You can't stop them with that, run!" He ordered as he hauled her along beside him while Thomas yelled back at Frypan, "Frypan, come on, let's go!"

Frypan fired a couple more shots before he turned and raced after his friends.

"Go! GO!" He yelled.

Thomas - satisfied his friend was coming after them - sped up to outrun Newt and Rachel. She was close behind him, now being the one to tug Newt to run faster as her swift legs carried her like a deer across the paved floor. But she and Thomas screeched to a halt as they heard another shriek from up ahead and Thomas flashed his light up even as Newt slammed into Rachel and almost sent her tumbling.

His hand on hers kept her upright and he didn't even have time to apologise as they all saw the group of Cranks coming right at them from the other end of the tunnel, which they could now just see. However, the literal light at the end of the tunnel was far out of their reach as they whipped their heads back and forth from one group of incoming Cranks to the other.

"Watch out!" Frypan cried as he fired at a Crank that had gotten closer to them than was comfortable while Newt grabbed the gun from Rachel as he shoved her behind him protectively.

Newt fired on the other group of Cranks as they all tightened together, trying to figure out a way to escape as Newt and Frypan kept the Cranks barely at bay.

"This way-" Thomas began as he thought he saw an opening to one side of the Cranks but Rachel tugged him back sharply as she said, "No, wait, look!"

Thomas belatedly saw the group of Cranks that were just appearing from the shadows, having mistaken the movement as the shadows of the visible Cranks. Meanwhile, Frypan's gun clicked, and he yelled, "I'm out!"

Newt fired a shot and he said grimly, "Pretty sure I'm on my last shot, too."

He fired again, killing another Crank that had attempted to get closer to their group, and his pistol clicked.

"Sh*t." Thomas hissed as Newt and Frypan abandoned their positions as guards and tightened around their group even more. Rachel pushed Newt so that they were all back to back in a circle, refusing to be sheltered in the center and she grasped his free hand tightly as they faced off against the Cranks with pounding hearts.

Knowing they would lose.


	6. Walls

The sudden growl of what was very distinctly a car engine made them pause and Rachel and Newt glanced back over their shoulders to stare in the direction the noise was coming from as it grew steadily louder. The Cranks that had been chasing them through the tunnel were also turning, shifting their focus to whatever was coming, before they screeched as they were sent flying out of the way as a jeep smashed it's way through.

The four gaped as the jeep came to a screeching halt right beside them, just missing hitting Frypan as it did, before a familiar face appeared out the top.

"Guys, get in!" Brenda hollered as she fired at the Cranks, keeping them away.

The Cranks howled and screamed but they couldn't come closer without being shot as Thomas leapt into the cargo bed at the back of the jeep first. He turned to help Rachel in as Newt shoved her up while Frypan climbed in on the other side. As soon as she was inside, Rachel pulled Newt in behind her while Thomas shouted, "Go, Jorge, go!"

Jorge didn't need to be told twice and he took off through the Cranks, driving into and over any Cranks that got in his way. The group inside the mostly open cargo bed ducked as Cranks were sent flying over their heads from when Jorge simply smashed into them before they were bathed in the natural light of the sun once more and the Cranks screeched as they were left behind at the edge of the tunnel's shadows.

The four teens slumped in relief before Rachel pushed Newt toward the back of the jeep. He wasn't having it and pulled her with him as he slid into the backseat of the jeep where Thomas joined them, squeezing to the right as Rachel settled in the middle beside Newt and Frypan kicked back behind them.

Jorge glanced into his rearview mirror, watching them with an amused smirk and he teased over the noise of the jeep's engine, "I'm impressed! You guys almost lasted a whole day."

Thomas didn't answer while Newt scanned Rachel critically.

"You alright?" He checked, his eyes lingering on the bruise on her forehead from where she had bumped it during the car crash.

"Yeah." She nodded. He didn't look convinced but he wrapped an arm silently around her, just as Brenda turned around in her seat at the front to stare at Thomas almost unnervingly.

He caught it and he said weakly, "I'm sorry; I didn't wanna bring you guys into this."

Brenda raised a brow and exchanged looks with Jorge, and Rachel almost smiled when Frypan piped up, "I think what he's trying to say is thanks for saving us."

Thomas shifted awkwardly and Brenda decided to have pity on him.

"You're welcome." She answered, turning back to face the front and Thomas relaxed.

Rachel leant her head against Newt's shoulder while he stared out the window and Frypan settled more comfortably in the back; but Jorge warned, "Hey, don't get your hopes up. That checkpoint was the last of the city's defense. If _that_ place was overrun? Chances are, the city is too."

Rachel felt Newt tense beneath her and she lifted her head to look at him curiously as he said in an odd voice, "Yeah... unless they figured out some other way to keep the Cranks out."

She followed Newt's gaze out the window and her breath caught. The others all looked over as well and Jorge and Brenda's jaws went slack while Rachel, Thomas and Frypan all tensed like Newt had. The jeep suddenly screeched to a halt as Jorge floored the brakes gruffly, needing a moment to get over his shock.

Again, the teens reacted differently as their prior experiences drove them to climb out of the jeep the instant it was no longer moving so that they could get a better look. Newt absently helped Rachel down as she clambered over the jeep window behind him, and she leant on his hand without thinking as both of their attention was fully captured on the sight before them.

Thomas and Frypan joined them and together, the four teens stood at the edge of the cliff, staring at the walled city that they somehow had to find a way into. A wall that looked painfully familiar. The irony was definitely not lost on them, and of course Newt was not afraid to point it out.

"Funny. We spent three years trapped behind walls, trying to break out." The Brit said dryly. "And now we wanna break back in."

"Yeah. It's hilarious." Frypan answered just as dryly and the two ex-Gladers exchanged looks filled with sarcastic humour.

"I never thought I'd face this again." Rachel said in a low voice, her tone filled with such dread that Newt looked down at her immediately. She was pale, her grey eyes fixed on the city that she had dreamt (or rather had nightmares) about and following the smooth curves of the walls that reminded her too much of the horrors she had helped create.

Rachel started as Newt clasped a hand on her shoulder and forced her to turn so that she was facing him.

"We'll be facing it together. And this time, you're on our side." He reminded her and he watched as the fear receded just a little bit from the depths of her gaze.

The self-loathing was still very present but Rachel nodded as she squeezed his hand tightly in thanks.

They turned to look at Thomas, who had missed their entire, quiet exchange he was so focused on the city, as he asked weakly, "Jorge, how do we get in?"

"Don't look at me, hermano." Jorge shrugged. "Those walls are new."

He paused before adding flatly, "I guess that's WCKD's answer for everything."

Rachel grimaced and Jorge observed her reaction curiously but Brenda piped up calmly, "Well, we ain't gonna figure it out from up here."

She glanced at Jorge who seemed to understand whatever silent message she was sending him, before she turned and headed back for the jeep.

"Let's go!"

Rachel and Frypan joined Jorge and Brenda in returning to the jeep but Newt paused as he glanced at Thomas who was still staring out at the walled city with a grim expression.

"You believe he's in there?" Newt checked and Thomas shrugged.

"I guess we'll find out." He answered noncommittally, turning to go. But Newt stopped him as he stated what he had originally come to say.

"You know she's gonna be there, too."

Thomas didn't reply but the expression, the darkness but also the pain, on his face made Newt sigh. Newt turned away from his friend but before he left to join the others in the jeep, he warned, "Be careful, Tommy. Because I won't let Rachel get hurt - no matter what."

Thomas glanced at his friend as Newt walked away and his brown eyes moved to sit on Rachel. She was waiting in the jeep watching them curiously and warily as she noticed the stiffness of Newt's posture as he returned. Her gaze met Thomas's questioningly and Thomas averted his gaze. He didn't know himself how to begin answering Newt's unspoken question; how was he to explain it to someone else?

With a sigh and one last look at the walled city, Thomas turned and joined the others in the jeep.

* * *

The town outside the enclosed city was little more than a pigsty and a dumping ground filled with the remains of what Rachel supposed could be called civilized humanity in an uncivilized world.

The smell of sweat, human excretions and death itself seemed to permeate the air as their group pushed their way through the throngs of people who moved in waves around each other through the cramped streets. Voices shouted all around them, vendors mixing in with general noises of riots, adding to the chaos and overwhelming Rachel. The crowds were making her feel claustrophobic and the loud noises of humanity seemed to ring in her ears, unfamiliar after a year or so of general quiet starting from the Maze. Noise usually meant something was wrong, noise was to her almost synonymous with danger, and to be pushed right into the loud drum of it brought on a strange panic.

Newt appeared to be just as uneasy as he kept her hand clutched tightly in his own as they weaved their way cautiously through the street. Brenda looked equally unnerved as she walked with her jacket's hood up, creating a physical shield between herself and the many eyes that roamed the town. Thomas meanwhile pushed on ahead with Jorge, Newt and Rachel close behind, making his way toward the great walls that towered over the edges of the town that had clustered around their bases.

"This place has already gone through hell." Jorge warned Thomas as he pushed his way through, his voice so low Newt had to strain to hear him.

"We've just got to stay together." Was Thomas's grim reply and Newt frowned, feeling a spark of anger at Thomas's apparent lack of concern for their safety.

Brenda was shoved harshly by a passerby, causing Frypan to move to shield the petite woman while Rachel almost stumbled as a homeless person's foot caught hers. The man gave a cry of rage but there was no way of telling who had been the one to kick him - if he even cared which he apparently did not as he shuffled back down into a more comfortable position to sleep.

"Why are they all out here?" Rachel wondered in a low voice and Newt slid past a questionable looking man, making sure Rachel was kept safely behind him as he answered.

"Probably didn't make it in before WCKD closed those walls. These people are the ones trapped in the Maze when the Grievers come out at night while the ones in the Glade remain safe because of their sacrifice."

Rachel's hand tightened in his in distress, and Newt realized how snappy his reply had sounded. He glanced over his shoulder at Rachel and his tone softened as he added, "But we found a way out of the Mazes; we'll find a way out of this too."

Rachel nodded when a voice, spoken over a loudspeaker, became more audible as it somehow came steadily closer toward them.

"We are the voice of the voiceless!"

Newt paused and Thomas also stopped as they all turned to watch warily as a group of mostly men, masked and armed as they sat literally on a black van, drove in their direction. The crowd parted almost in welcome as people cheered and rallied toward the man holding the speaker to his mouth as he shouted.

"They hide behind their walls, thinking they can keep the cure for themselves, while they watch the rest of us wither and rot!"

The truck drove passed the group and Thomas stared up at the masked men curiously, frowning a little when the one seated at the back seemed to gaze back at him. Newt didn't notice, busy eyeing the next van that drove by warily but Rachel too noticed the way the mysterious soldier's mask remained pointed in Thomas's direction.

"But there are more of us than there are of them. And I say, we rise up and take back what is ours! Let's bring back a victory!"

"That man," she whispered, tugging on Newt's arm to get his attention. "I think he recognized Thomas."

"What?" Newt asked, turning around swiftly in time to spot the man. The soldier was still looking at them but at Newt's stare he seemed to turn away - as though avoiding them.

Newt's eyes narrowed but their focus was broken as a whirring noise sounded high above. The group looked up to see small drones whizzing about while even further above, a Berg flew by. Rachel paled.

"WCKD." She whispered; there was only one organization who could have this mass technology at their disposal.

"What are those drones?" Frypan asked, frowning.

"I don't know but I don't like the look of them." Newt muttered. Thomas seemed to agree as he looked around before nodding to a covered alleyway.

"This way."

The group slipped into the alley, avoiding being out in the open as they made their way deeper into the town and closer to the wall. Eventually they came out onto a street that went right up to the wall… and a barricade in front of a small entrance.

"That's it." Thomas said as he fixed his gaze on the entrance instantly. "That's our way in."

"Uh… Thomas?" Rachel called warily as she looked around at the entire crowd that was rioting in front of the barricade, shouting the same thing.

"Let us in! To the wall! Let us in!"

Thomas didn't appear to notice as he moved swiftly through the crowd toward the barricade and Newt groaned.

"Dumb shank's doing it again." He muttered and Rachel said worriedly, "Come on - we can't lose him. We can't lose sight of any of each other, not in this crowd."

"It's more a mob than a crowd." Frypan agreed as he was shoved to the side with no apology or even a side glance. Newt saw and he noticed the anger of the rioters, their unchecked movements even if they were somehow kept at bay from the barricade.

"Hold on to me." He instructed Rachel, pulling her even tighter against him and wrapping her arm around his waist while he pulled her under his arm.

Rachel did so, holding Newt tightly as he pushed them through the crowd, doing his best to shield her from the more aggressive jostles as the mob didn't part easily. Frypan shielded Brenda while they followed Jorge and Thomas, who had reached the very edge of the barricade by that point although he was held back from going further by the older man.

As they neared the wall and the barricade, the mob's behaviour grew more violent with things being thrown toward the guards standing right by the base of the wall. But Rachel was still puzzled by the large empty space between what she was starting to realize was a makeshift barricade and the guards that had to be from WCKD.

"Something's not right." She muttered and Newt agreed dryly, "There are a lot of things not right here, love."

His attention was focused on a masked soldier - the same one, he would wager, that had been staring at them earlier - who appeared to be following him and Frypan although the mystery guy was staying well behind them in the crowd. Still, Newt was certain they were being followed, a feeling that was growing stronger by the minute as he noticed another two masked soldiers walking in line with them several yards to their right.

Rachel was too short to notice the oddities in the crowd around them but she was not so short she couldn't see the wall. And it was at that, specifically the doorway in the wall where Thomas was clearly hoping to find a path through to the city that she nodded to as she explained, "No, I mean with that. Why are these people not going closer? What's keeping them back because I highly doubt it's a couple guards with guns."

Newt paused, registering the logic in Rachel's statement, but as he did so he noticed yet another soldier to their left, slowly closing in.

His grip on her tightened and he said in a very low voice, "There's something else - don't look around but we're being followed."

"What?" Rachel asked, her grey eyes shooting up to stare at him with alarm.

Chocolate brown eyes were grim as he met her gaze briefly before he pushed more forcefully through the crowd. Rachel tried to glance back but she couldn't see anything besides the bodies bumping into them as the crowd jostled so she gave up quickly. It didn't mean she was not convinced, however, so it was with equal tension as Newt that she pushed up behind Thomas Jorge where Brenda and Frypan had just arrived too.

"Hey, guys," Newt said above the shouts of the people around them but keeping his voice lower so that only their group could really make out what he was saying. "We gotta go now. Look."

He gestured behind him and the taller males quickly spotted the masked soldiers who were now abandoning all pretenses as they shoved their way into the crowd to close in on the group.

"Rach, come on-" Newt began, starting to pull her quickly away from the soldiers now that the others were also warned, when an odd bell rang out. The toll boomed and echoed strangely while the crowd went abruptly silent in response.

"Wha-?"

Frypan cut himself off as they all watched wide-eyed while giant, multi-point machine guns lifted out the sides of the wall… and pointed right at the crowd. Immediately, the crowd began to scream and flee, rushing away and Rachel gasped.

"That's why." She breathed in realization before lunging forward and grasping Jorge and Frypan. "We have to run. RUN!"

She pulled on them and Jorge stopped to grab Thomas, hauling the teen back as he seemed unwilling to move just yet while he waited to see just what the guns could do. Newt had no similar desire as he pulled Rachel with him into a run, Brenda and Frypan close behind just as the first blast hit the ground maybe fifty yards away from where the barricades were.

It was like a small bomb had gone off as the entire ground shook while dirt flew into the air from the force of the explosion. Realizing that the danger was indeed far greater than he'd assumed, Thomas whirled around and chased after his friends, Jorge with him as they scrambled through the panicked crowds.

"Newt!" Rachel cried as he was knocked suddenly to the side by a frantic man who was pushing anything and everyone in his way as he tore his way away from the blaster fire. Rachel stopped instantly, going back to grab Newt's hand once more and pulling him to his feet just as a blast exploded nearby.

"Go, go!" Newt yelled as he ran with her, while the blaster fire - having caught up to the crowds - threw up dirt and people. Blood and mud rained as the blasts cut through people and sent bodies flying into the air in the aftershock of the explosions. Screams permeated the air now while the group scrambled to escape, for cover, anything while simultaneously trying not to lose each other.

"Fry!" Rachel yelled as he was sent flying in the aftershock of a blast that had come too close. Brenda covered him while Newt yelled, "Look out!"

He pulled them both and then Thomas out of the way as a blast came right in their direction. They barely managed to escape the explosion range, and Newt shouted, "There! Go, go!"

He pointed to a side street which appeared to lead away from the guns' firing range and the group raced to make it to cover. Frypan and Brenda joined them, having spotted them through the melee and Rachel all but pushed them through the alley just as another blast exploded into the ground behind them. Newt and Rachel were next as they ducked into the alley and then under a low-hanging bridge, while Thomas and Jorge brought up the rear as they scampered through the covered side streets in an attempt to escape the blaster fire.

Brenda tripped along the way, but Thomas caught her and he urged her on as they all raced out of the side alleys and into an open plaza that seemed to safely be out of the guns' range.

Unfortunately, just as Frypan, Rachel and Newt raced out into the plaza, masked soldiers sprang out from behind parked vans and grabbed at them. Rachel shrieked as one of the soldiers grabbed her and hauled her away from Newt while another grasped hold of Newt.

"Let me go!" Rachel shouted, struggling violently against her captor as he lifted her physically off the ground and flung her along somewhere; toward one of the vans she realized. "Newt!"

"Rach!" She heard Newt shout. "Hey, get off me! Rachel! Oof."

Rachel craned her head back in time to see Newt keel over slightly as he was punched in the stomach by his captor. Rachel increased her own attempts, pushing herself off the ground the next time her feet made contact with the earth so that she could viciously kick the red-masked man standing by the van door right where the sun didn't shine.

The man bent over with a pained groan, but he still shoved her into the van right behind Thomas before Brenda was thrown in after her and the door slammed shut just as the van took off to who knew where.


	7. Gally

Rachel sat in silence beside Thomas where he was seated between her and Brenda.

None of them dared look at each other as they kept their eyes warily on the masked - and more importantly, armed - soldiers who had settled into the actual seats opposite where the three were on the floor against the back of the van. Rachel's hands were clenched tight as she waited for them to arrive wherever they were being taken, her heart still pounding with adrenaline and her mind split into worry for herself and her current companions, and Newt.

She hadn't been able to see what happened to him and the fear that he was lying somewhere back in that plaza, shot, made it impossible for her to stop the way her hands trembled. Thomas seemed to notice but he kept his mouth shut for once and didn't comment as he kept his eyes on the soldier - the tallest of the lot and the one that had accosted and subsequently kidnapped him - right across from him.

Suddenly, their environment grew darker and Rachel tensed as she realized they had entered into a building, wherever that may be. The light through the windows steadily disappeared, indicating they were going deeper and deeper into somewhere and Rachel wondered if they were headed underground; which was odd because she was fairly certain WCKD's preferred method was air.

Thomas tensed beside her and she knew he was thinking the same thing; only for all of them to squint as suddenly light spilled into the van once more through the windows and Rachel wondered if perhaps they had arrived at a Berg loading point - it would explain the light.

A sudden banging on the back of the van made them jump before they tensed as the soldiers in front of them raised their guns and pointed them meaningfully at the trio. The back of the van opened at the same time and she, Thomas and Brenda glanced back to see they were surrounded by armed, masked soldiers outside too.

"Get out!" One of them commanded, and Thomas glanced at his companions before sliding out first.

He squinted at the masked man, trying to see something through the masks while Rachel and Brenda warily climbed out behind him just as a second van came screeching into the building that they found themselves in. It took a second for Rachel to realize it was an old shopping mall parking lot, which explained the square of sunlight coming in - they had to be on the level right below the rooftop parking.

A noise made her glance back at the second van that had just arrived and Rachel was alarmed as she saw it jostle violently.

The surrounding soldiers all raised and cocked their weapons immediately warily, waiting instead of opening the van up as they had done with Rachel's team. Thomas stepped forward, standing protectively before Brenda and covering Rachel as he stood ready to face whatever came out of the van.

The other van shook and jostled again - and then suddenly the back door was forced open and two men fell out. Well, one (the masked one) fell out; the other (whom Rachel realized a beat later was Jorge) lunged out of the van so he could accost his captor once more.

"Where is she?!" Jorge roared. "Where is she, you son of a b-?!"

"Hey! Hey, hey!" Brenda yelled while Thomas swore and Rachel cried out as they all lunged forward in alarm while Jorge continued to viciously punch the man underneath him again and again.

The soldiers meanwhile were swarming toward Jorge as Thomas and Brenda tried to get to him before he could kill the man and end up killed himself. Rachel meanwhile had run headlong into Newt as the teen climbed quickly out the van behind Jorge.

"Newt!" Rachel gasped, grey eyes lighting up in relief instantly even as he caught her. Newt's expression mirrored hers before their second of respite was interrupted Brenda's yells and Jorge's punches mixed with the soldier's shouts crashed over them once more.

The soldiers around them also pushed Thomas and then Newt and Rachel back with pointed guns in warning and Newt snapped, "Okay! Alright!" as he raised his hands to show he meant no harm but refusing to budge from his place just in front of Rachel as the soldiers threatened them. Rachel similarly refused to be pulled away from him, elbowing one of the masked men in the face when he tried to grab her; and the tall red-masked male who had been in the van with her stopped his comrade from going after Rachel again as the brunette pressed herself against the British blond.

Brenda meanwhile had finally made Jorge realize she was right beside him and was perfectly fine, and Jorge hugged Brenda in relief while the masked male who had stopped his comrade from pulling Rachel away called sternly, "Everybody relax. We're all on the same side here."

Thomas's eyes narrowed and he shoved back the soldier keeping him in place as he snapped at the speaker, "What do you mean same side? Who the hell are you?"

Newt and Rachel also stared at the soldier who had recognized them in the town, the one who they knew instinctively had led the attack against and kidnap of them. The soldier slowly turned to face them and Rachel sensed a great reluctance about him as his gaze appeared to pass over Jorge, Brenda and her before resting on Frypan, Newt and Thomas for longer.

At last, after dithering for a while longer, the man slowly reached up and removed his mask to reveal a face much younger than Rachel had been expecting. In fact, contrary to his exceptionally tall build, the boy could hardly be much older than her, if he was even older than her at all, as dark eyes stared out from under high, arched brows and above freckled, rounded cheeks. He was unfamiliar to her but Rachel was startled when Newt instantly stiffened beside her.

She glanced up at him before her eyes flew back to the boy as he spoke with his eyes fixed solely on Thomas for the moment.

"Hey, Greenie."

Thomas took a faltering step forward, looking like he'd seen a ghost.

"Gally?" Thomas asked in a voice that just broke ever so slightly.

Rachel glanced at Newt and then Frypan as Thomas spoke and their expressions told her more than any number of words could what she suspected. This boy had come from their Maze; but for some reason, none of them had known he had survived. In fact, judging from Newt's expression, they had been certain he was _dead_.

But Rachel jumped when, without warning, Thomas suddenly launched himself at Gally and swung a fist, hard, into the taller boy's face.

"Thomas?!" Rachel cried while Newt yelled, "No, wait!"

Their group rushed to try and stop Thomas only to mostly stop in their tracks as the surrounding soldiers quickly raised their guns again, some at the group while the others at Thomas. Thomas paid them absolutely no attention, too busy tackling Gally to the ground. To his credit, the tall and muscular teen put up no fight at all, simply accepting the blow to his cheek that was so strong it knocked him cleanly off his feet and then doing nothing to stop Thomas as the darker haired boy reared back from atop him, ready to take another swing.

He even gestured to his fellow soldiers, keeping them back as he called quite calmly given the circumstances, "Stop it, it's alright, it's alright!"

Newt, the only one to push forward despite the guns pointed his way (after a hasty "Stay here!" to Rachel when she tried to drag him back by his shirt), grabbed Thomas's fist before he could hit Gally again.

"Stop, stop, stop! Stop, Tommy, stop it."

Newt pulled Thomas back and Rachel was startled to see Thomas was actually shaking with a repressed emotion that she realized now was not just anger. It was heartbreak, driven into anger in an attempt to escape from the near-crippling despair that threatened to paralyze him.

"He killed Chuck." Thomas got out, his voice trembling along with his body and it seemed the teen couldn't decide if he was going to rage again or cry.

Newt obviously knew too well what Thomas was feeling as the British youth soothed, "Yeah, I know. I know; I remember. I was there too, alright?"

Newt gestured at Gally as he continued sternly, "But I also remember that he was stung and half out of his mind."

Newt glanced around at all the guns pointed at them before he looked back at Thomas.

"Just calm down." He implored. "Alright?"

For a fraction of a second, it looked like Thomas was going to ignore Newt's advice anyway and Rachel held her breath in terror that her friend and her… well, the boy she cared far too much about, were about to be shot right before her eyes. And then she let out a breath of relief as Thomas pulled his fist from Newt's grasp and got to his feet, backing away from Gally although he never took his eyes off the other boy.

Gally warily watched Thomas fully retreat before he slowly got back to his feet. Newt let the boy get up on his own as he too backed away and returned to where Rachel was waiting. She grabbed his hand with one hand and his arm with her other as soon as he was beside her, holding him tightly.

"That was dangerous." She hissed under her breath.

"Someone's got to look after that shank." Newt muttered back, rubbing a hand across his forehead while both of them kept their eyes on Gally as the teen straightened up.

He worked his jaw, grimacing painfully before he said with almost resignation, "Kind of had that coming."

Satisfied his jaw was still in place, he lowered his hand before looking over at the group with almost a challenging gleam in his eyes.

"Anybody else?" He asked in a calm voice, looking at his former Gladers. "Fry? Newt?"

Neither teen replied, Frypan breathing heavily as he still stared at Gally like he was seeing the ghost of Christmas Past while Newt's posture was stiff as he tightened his grip on Rachel's hand.

Rachel glanced from Newt to Gally and back, before she asked softly, "Who exactly is he?"

"He was an old friend." Frypan was the one to answer and Rachel saw the look of dejection that briefly crossed Gally's face.

Newt meanwhile added grimly, "More importantly, this isn't possible. We _watched_ you _die_."

He addressed Gally with his last words while Rachel flinched at what he'd said; before her jaw dropped as Gally corrected caustically, "No, you _left_ me to die."

He then addressed all of them as he added while gesturing to his fellow soldiers, "And if we hadn't found you when we did, you'd be dead right now."

"You're the ones who accosted us when we had gotten out." Rachel pointed out.

Gally turned to her, and Newt immediately stepped to be in front of Rachel with a guarded expression. It was clear he trusted Gally about as much as he trusted Frypan to not sneak out the first helping of the dinner stew. His distrust made Rachel wary too as Gally scoffed.

"Yeah, you made it out of the firing range of those guns but why do you think those things went off in the first place?"

His question was met with silence as they digested that before Gally continued.

"Anyone who gets away from WCKD is classified as a threat to them. _Especially_ you." He nodded at Thomas, who bristled at being talked to. Gally quickly moved on as he scanned all of their faces before he sighed.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He demanded tiredly, and Rachel glanced at Newt.

Thomas looked disinclined to answer while Newt was obviously brooding; clearly, while he didn't trust Gally, he trusted him far more than he trusted WCKD. Not that that really said much.

"Minho." Rachel explained after a moment of silence where it was doubtful anyone would have replied.

Gally looked startled, although whether it was because she had said his fellow Glader's name with familiarity or because she had been the one who responded, Rachel couldn't say.

Thomas hadn't let up on his glaring but Newt heaved a sigh before he added for Gally, "WCKD has him here. We're looking for a way in."

Gally stared at them all for a beat, and it was obvious he was debating whether to offer before he finally did.

"I can help with that." He said at length before turning around to leave. "Follow me."

The boy turned to lead them away but Thomas's dark words stopped him in his tracks.

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Thomas..." Rachel murmured warningly while their group tensed at Thomas's declaration. The other soldiers' guns were still lifted warily in the air; clearly, they trusted Thomas and his friends about as much as the group trusted the soldiers. And Rachel for one was not exactly looking to prove whether they could fight their way out against the armed soldiers.

Gally however turned slowly back to face Thomas and he shrugged almost carelessly.

"Suit yourself."

Gally paused before nodding with his head in the direction they had obviously come from; the place where they needed to go no matter what. And his next words cinched the deal.

"But I can get you through those walls."

* * *

The group followed Gally carefully as the boy led them deep into one of the many tunnels branching off from the parking lot they had arrived in. Thomas was in the lead with Frypan while Jorge and Brenda trailed behind in the rear. Rachel stayed close to Newt in the middle and they kept their hands intertwined, neither willing to be parted after the series of shocks they had endured in the last hour.

"After the maze, I got picked up by a group headed to the city."

Gally was explaining as he walked.

"They realized I was immune, patched me up, and they brought me here to Lawrence. This group's been at war with WCKD ever since they took control of the city. But WCKD can't hide behind those walls forever. Day's gonna come, and they're gonna pay for what they've done."

Rachel frowned and she glanced around worriedly. While she wanted to see WCKD finally brought down, the stirring hostility all around them was unnerving and Gally's words only made her uneasier rather than comforted.

' _Evil is not an invitation to do evil in return._ ' Rachel thought with a frown as she looked around at the masses of people who were busying themselves for war, clearly always on the alert and ready to spring into action when called. ' _What kind of life must this be like? To be constantly looking for a fight? Is this the haven we've been looking for?_ '

No; the answer was simple. This was not what Rachel and the other Immunes had been fighting for. They were looking for freedom and peace; and even if these people might call them cowards for just wanting out, Rachel didn't care. She had no desire to see WCKD burn. She was so tired of death. Enough blood had been spilled already; there was no need for more.

Gally stopped at a corner where the tunnel obviously curved into a dead-end. Likely this was where this Lawrence was but Rachel's unease grew as Gally seemed to hesitate a little.

"Listen, uh, he doesn't get a lot of visitors." He hedged, glancing at their group warningly. "So, let me do the talking. All right? And try not to stare."

With those cheery words, Gally stepped around the corner. Rachel and Newt exchanged looks before following along with the rest of their group.

The room they had walked into was large, larger than Rachel had expected. It was the size of a large cabin and the occupants had taken full advantage of the space. The group had walked out onto a metal walkway that had been installed to create a small, second story balcony above the lower ground level where crates and bookcases lined the walls. Several small side tables and armchairs littered the ground, all just as covered in books and potted plants as the crates. Several lamps were propped up throughout the room and they lit up the space in warm light that gave the room a cosy feel and contributed to the feeling that Rachel had just walked into a wooden cabin that was also used as a greenhouse.

A man stood on the far side of the room, just off to the side of a cluster of potted plants and he watched their arrival with guarded eyes. But it was only as they walked down the steps that Rachel noticed another man standing amongst the potted plants. A large desk strewn with papers and more books stood abandoned nearby as the man stooped amongst the plants, hidden from them by the luscious leaves and the shadows created by the bright sunlight streaming in through a hole in the roof that apparently acted like a window. In fact, if not for his muttering then Rachel might have missed the man entirely.

As they got closer, she was finally able to make out what the man was saying.

"Rose took my nose, I suppose. Rose took my nose, I suppose. Suppose, suppose, took my nose... I suppose."

The man suddenly paused in his mutterings although the silence was almost as unnerving as his senseless mutterings had been. Then, without raising his head, the man called, "Gally, glad to see you made it back."

The man straightened up and it was then that Rachel noticed the man was strapped to an IV. The metal support was tucked amongst the plants and if not for the sudden catch of the sunlight against a bright blue liquid inside a small plastic package that swung from the metal support, she would have missed it completely.

The knowledge that this man was ill somehow made her even more unnerved and Rachel stepped unconsciously closer to Newt as they all drew to a halt before them who was still not looking at them as he gestured to the man who had been with him.

"Jasper told me what happened."

"It was a slaughter." Gally confirmed heavily. "There's nothing we could do against those guns."

"No," Lawrence agreed, "but they can only poke the hornet's nest so long before they get stung."

He lifted the rose he had carefully cut from his little bush and sniffed at it, although there was something odd about his profile when he did. Rachel frowned, trying to place what had struck her about this man when Lawrence lowered the rose again and gestured at their group.

"Now, who are these people? Why are they here?"

Gally glanced back at Thomas at Lawrence's question and the boy didn't hesitate to step up.

"We need to get into WCKD." Thomas explained, taking a strong step forward. "Gally said you can get us through the walls."

Gally shot Thomas a look while Lawrence turned to stare at Thomas for a moment. His face was still shadowed but Rachel frowned as she thought she saw a bald patch on the man's head - a very uneven bald patch.

"Gally should know better than to make promises that he can't keep." Lawrence said slowly, drawing Rachel's attention back to the man's actual words.

"Besides," Lawrence grasped a walking stick and then pulled his IV around his body so he could fully face the teens. "That wall is only half your problem. Getting inside WCKD is impossible."

"There might be a way now." Gally explained although he sounded hesitant. "But it doesn't work without Thomas."

Thomas shot Gally a furtive look, wondering what the boy meant. Lawrence stepped closer.

"Is that so?" He asked before he turned to Thomas. "Do you know what I am... Thomas?"

Lawrence took another step forward, bringing him out of the shadows and into the light of the room. Rachel sucked in a quiet breath while Newt's hand tightened on hers as they found themselves staring at a man whose body was half desecrated. That was what had been wrong with his side profile: the man had no nose except for the holes out of the protruding bones in his skull. The flesh on half his skin was rotting, skin scabbed over in pieces that didn't look like it would last long, one eye filmed with white - exactly like the Cranks they had seen.

Thomas to his credit didn't move although his gaze lowered as Lawrence continued to drawl, "I am a businessman. Which means that I don't take unnecessary risks. Why should I trust you?"

"'Cause I can help you." Thomas answered in a low voice that matched Lawrence's in both pitch and severity. "You see, if you can get me through those walls... I can get you what you need."

Lawrence eyed the boy skeptically. "What is it that you think I need?"

"Time." Thomas answered without missing a beat. "Every last drop."

Lawrence scoffed as he eyed the blue liquid in his IV, the serum that was clearly the only thing keeping him sane and stopping him from becoming a full-on Crank.

Still, Lawrence wasn't about to make things easy for them and he challenged Thomas, "Is that what I need?"

Thomas frowned slightly but he just answered firmly, "WCKD has something we both want."

Lawrence examined the boy for a long, silent moment before he made his decision.

"I'll tell you what. Two can go for now." He leveled a measured look at Thomas. "The rest stay down here with me. Just a little insurance to make sure you find your way back."

Newt's frown deepened as he glanced at Rachel, but she just nodded at him and Thomas as the other boy looked back at his friends uneasily. It didn't look like they were in danger exactly with the rebel group and this was the best shot they had at getting to Minho. Frypan clearly agreed with her while Jorge did not. Newt looked torn but he also recognized what Rachel did; it was the defeat in his eyes that made Thomas able to make his decision.

"We have a deal?" Lawrence asked as Thomas looked back at him.

The dark-haired teen took Lawrence's hand and shook it once. Lawrence smirked.

"Gally, show him the way."


End file.
